The global terrorist threat continued to evolve rapidly in 2015, becoming increasingly decentralized and diffuse. Terrorist groups continued to exploit an absence of credible and effective state institutions, where avenues for free and peaceful expression of opinion were blocked, justice systems lacked credibility, and where security force abuses and government corruption went unchecked.

The text of the following statement was issued jointly by the Governments of the United States of America, the United Kingdom, and Norway.

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The Troika (Norway, the United Kingdom and the United States) supports the efforts of the African Union High-level Implementation Panel (AUHIP) to create a Roadmap Agreement for ending conflict in Sudan.

Remarks
Steven Feldstein Deputy Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
New York City Bar Association
New York City
December 7, 2015

I’m pleased to be here, I’d like to thank Elizabeth Barad and the New York Bar for inviting me to deliver remarks and answer some of your questions.

I’m here tonight to talk about human rights and democracy trends in Africa. What I can say with certainty is that in the 20 months I have been on the job, no day has been the same, and every week has been unpredictable. Consider the following:

On October 14, 2015, Secretary Kerry submitted the 2014 International Religious Freedom Report to the United States Congress. Now in its 17th year, this congressionally-mandated Report comprises almost 200 distinct reports on countries and territories worldwide and continues to reflect the United States’ commitment to, and advancement of, the right of every person to freedom of religion or belief. The Report is available at www.State.gov and www.HumanRights.gov.

Last week I accompanied World Food Program (WFP) Executive Director Ertharin Cousin to South Sudan to see how the world’s largest humanitarian food agency is addressing one of its most complex and pressing challenges.

As I viewed WFP’s emergency operations, I was again reminded that as much as you try to envision the lives of those millions of displaced and hungry, their reality always defies imagination.

The members of the Troika (the United States, the United Kingdom, and Norway) welcome recent efforts to reinvigorate a process of genuine national dialogue in Sudan. As the country confronts a new and critical era in its history, we remain conscious of the continuing governance concerns expressed by the Sudanese people, the problems of center-periphery imbalance, and the articulation of political, economic, and social grievances, particularly in the country’s peripheries. Despite years of peacemaking attempts supported by regional and international actors, deadly conflicts persist.

The Members of the Troika welcome the National Congress Party’s stated intent to undertake a process of national dialogue in Sudan. We have long shared the view of many Sudanese that a sustainable peace and a prosperous Sudan can only be achieved through a fundamental review—and reform—of national governance systems that concentrate power at the center and marginalize the regions.

The United States announced $49.8 million in additional humanitarian assistance to help victims of conflict in South Sudan. With this new assistance, the United States has provided more than $300 million in humanitarian assistance in Fiscal Years 2013 and 2014 to assist South Sudanese victims of conflict as well as refugees seeking asylum in South Sudan.

The United States announced today it has provided an additional $11.5 million in humanitarian assistance to support protection and assistance activities for the nearly 70,000 new Central African refugees in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Chad, Cameroon, and the Republic of the Congo and for some 30,000 new Darfur Sudanese refugees in Chad. This new funding is in addition to nearly $168 million in assistance the United States has provided to refugee operations in these countries.

The Embassy wishes to announce that in solidarity with the Sudanese people and to alleviate suffering resulting from recent flash floods in Sudan, the United States Government is providing $50,000 in additional humanitarian assistance to support life-saving aid for flood-affected populations. Since early August, heavy rainfall and resultant flash flooding have affected approximately 147,000 people across eight states in Sudan, including more than 84,000 people in worst-affected Khartoum State, and damaged or destroyed houses and public infrastructure.

Remarks
Anne C. Richard
Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration
Young Leaders of the World Affairs Council

Atlanta, GA

February 9, 2013

Thank you, for that kind introduction. And thank you to the Young Leaders of the World Affairs Council for your invitation to join you. And thank you for devoting your Saturday to learning about refugees around the world and America’s responsibility to them.